Rachel, Daughter of Rathe
by BritnehBee
Summary: Just read A/N at the top and the bottom, pretty much spells everything out lol. This is SebbyOC, and I am incorporating a few elements from another show but I'll go into that later. Please take a look, tell me what you think! Rated M just to be on the safe side.


**Okay. So...I have NOOO idea why I decided to start writing this (This is probably something I'll start out, may or may not finish, who knows right?), but I watched Black Butler like CRAZY last week and I just was so...WOW. I LOVE this anime guys, loveitloveitloveit! SO, I decided to write a fanfic! Yaaay! This is more of a prologue sort of thing, I'm really not sure of the full story plot yet or anything like that but it came to me so vividly that I just wanted to share it with you all. :) I'll add on more info about the setting and all that later on, and for now I'm putting up a generic title until I'm really ready to title this baby but yeah. Please take a look and tell me what you think! Byee!**

**Formatting:**

**All Italics section = Flashback; the site isn't keeping any of my original formatting (Agh...)**

* * *

"…Just when the Age of Reason seemed to be bearing fruit in the 19th century, there was an unexpected reaction against the very method which had brought success, a wild return to archaic forms of belief, and among the intelligentsia a sinister concentration on superstitions which had been thought buried…"

* * *

Southern Shores of Gravesend

Kent England, 1888

A lone coach makes its way through the murky wilds surrounding a peaceful township; the running gear and chassis buck and heave as it travels along the winding Shore Way, and the bay Holsteins (growing skittish of the neighboring crags) entered a swift canter at the sudden crack of the crimson-eyed driver's whip. Its rider, a young boy of 14, gave the deathly drop a very brief glance before returning his gaze to the unsealed letter in his right hand…

_Ciel glanced up sharply from his desk when there was a sudden knock on his study door._

"_Young Master?"_

_Turning his chair to the window, Ciel continued his reading. "Come in, Sebastian."_

_There was a soft click of the handle as the butler swiftly entered, closing the door gently behind him. _

"_What is it now? Did that bothersome dog set the grounds ablaze—" Ciel nearly leapt out his skin, hearing something with quite a bit of weight slam down on the polished desktop. "What the hell was that?!"_

"_These—" Sebastian motioned to the bulky stack of heavily embellished envelopes, sporting his usual accommodating smile. "Are all the letters we've received today."_

_Ciel's countenance immediately soured. Was it that time of the year again…? Meaningless balls, courting and dancing…_

These people must not think I've a job to do.

_With a weighty sigh he tugged at the piece of ribbon holding them together and flicked through every invitation as if they were junk mail: The Earl of Warwick, the Baron of Bath, the Countess of Cardolan…_

"_So?" Sebastian prodded, a feathered pen and parchment at the ready. "Who shall we reject this time?"_

_Ciel threw the entire be-glittered batch behind him. "All of them. I've no time for such drivel."_

_Smirking to himself, Sebastian bowed. "Very well My Lord—oh?"_

_A simple, blank envelope suddenly caught his eye. Reaching down, he flipped it over and his eyes brightened in realization._

_Ciel turned his head as he approached, curious. "What is it?"_

"_It would seem, my Lord," Sebastian held it out to him, its royal seal facing upward. "We've yet another task from her majesty…"_

_Ripping the seal open, Ciel began reading:_

_To my Cute Boy,_

_How are things? Are you well? Despite the change in the season I find myself unable to enjoy it as there are some worries on my mind. Outside the town of Gravesend there is an old Catholic Abbey. It was burned down during the Reformation and is no longer in use, but a small cult practicing an East-known religion has been gathering there. There've been the most distressing rumours circling; apparently they're planning a coup against the government and their activities of late have made the inhabitants quake with fear. I am deeply worried; I wish for my people to live happy, safe lives… _

–_Victoria_

"…_So, 'Make sure this cult is disbanded.' is what she's saying." Sebastian murmured._

_The Earl closed his eyes. "Yes, it would seem so."_

"…_Orders, Sir?"_

_Ciel's eyes snapped open, both gleaming a fiery ruby-red. "Ready the coach."_

_Smirking, Sebastian bowed once more. "Yes, my Lord…"_

_And still no Abbey in sight…If we don't return soon I won't have a manor waiting, not with those idiots at the helm… _

Sighing once more, Ciel leaned against the upholstery. _I grow weary of the Occult…_

"Wah!" The coach suddenly hitched, running over a very deep pothole.

"Oi!" Ciel rapped the hood of the coach with the head of his cane. "Watch it!"

Chuckling to himself, Sebastian snapped the reigns.

…_Hm?_

The demon spotted a mountainous pile of rubble and aged pillars off in the distance. _Ah…_

He slowed the horses to gentle stop, and leaping down from his perch Sebastian unlatched the carriage door.

"Master? We've arrived."

Ciel wasted no time, making his way toward the half-worn arches of brick and stone; wild grass carpeted everything, it even found its way in between the cracks of the foundation.

The pair wandered toward what appeared to be an entrance of some sort. Inside, the stone pews were cracked in some places, some even pulverized and at this Ciel's eyes narrowed. Though it had been over a few centuries since its destruction there was no way a fire could do so much damage. Could it?

"Master, over here."

Turning, Ciel neared him. "Did you find something?"

"Look at this."

It was a manhole cover, caked with dirt and rusted over with age. Sebastian knelt to one knee, and with a silent nod from the young Earl he ripped it out of its confines. Throwing it to the side, he peered closer. There was a metal ladder which ran down the length of the narrow tunnel, covered in limestone dust. There were the faintest imprints of a hand on the top rung, and glancing up Sebastian irked an eyebrow. "Shall we…?"

Ciel started to sweat, slightly nervous, but he soon regained his composure when he caught the twinkle of amusement in the demon butler's eyes. "Well? What are you waiting for, let's go already!"

"As you wish Master."

Gathering the boy in his arms, Sebastian began their descent into the shale-covered tube and soon they were enveloped in pure darkness. Sebastian glanced down at him briefly, feeling his grip tighten around him, and he smiled. Though the boy was no longer human he _was_ still a child…

Upon reaching the bottom Sebastian snapped his fingers, and soon they were awash in an eerie warm glow as one by one candles were set alight in their skull-shaped holders. They soon realized what they'd wandered into.

"These are…"

"The Catacombs." Sebastian murmured, setting him down on his feet.

Lining the walls of the extensive corridor were nothing but human remains; femurs, shoulder joints, the occasional cracked ribcage. A single row of skulls decorated the macabre arrangement, some of them sporting large gaping holes while others were perfectly smooth. All had the dull patina of age and seemed to be cemented to one another, almost as if they'd merged into a single being after centuries of lying there, sentinels to death.

"So many…I wonder how they ended up here?"

Beneath the flickering candlelight, Sebastian smirked. "During the Black Plague bodies were moved from public cemeteries to stop the spread of disease from the overflowing mass graves. The dead were brought to the catacombs in order to save the remaining survivors but there were inevitable rumours that the hand of Satan hovered about the city…"

Ceil shot him a brief look of annoyance. "And whose fault do you suppose that is?"

Sebastian merely smiled.

"…This way."

Ciel turned into first one, and then another narrow passageway which finally opened into a wide circular space. It was a massive chamber, almost resembling a simple foyer. A carved double door of solid wrought iron faced them from one of its walls and it was covered in the strangest pictographs and figures, the most prominent of its marks akin to the letter "S."

It was sealed shut; Ciel glanced back at the demon butler. "Open it, Sebastian."

With one deft kick the doors were flung open. "After you my Lord—"

Shocked into silence, the pair quietly entered the vaulted room and beheld the grisly scene laid out before them with horror-stricken eyes.

They were standing at the highest level of a miniature amphitheatre, modeled after a Greek hippodrome no doubt. On the surrounding pillars were iron sconces, each carrying a single torch, and from what they could see in the oscillating light there were numerous stone figures strewn all over, their limbs and faces contorted in the most gruesome of ways.

Sebastian's gaze drifted over to a pile of petrified bodies crawling their way up the concentric steps of the arena. Some were gripping onto their neighbours for dear life, using them as a means of escape. But, from what…?

"How interesting…Even in death humans will drag others down to get what they want…"

"Not surprising, is it?" Ciel asked, making his way down the occupied steps. Sebastian followed.

At the very center of the coliseum there was a single stone altar. It was cracked in two, its decorative candles tossed to the ground and what had been an unsoiled prayer cloth now torn to shreds. Strangely, the altar had been left untouched by the black scorch marks covering the majority of the circular room.

"Look at this." Ciel tapped his cane against its clawed stanchion.

The demon butler knelt closer, balancing himself on the balls of his feet. "Everything past this point is completely ossified…" He murmured, swiping a finger over the blackened portion of stone only to find his gloves unmarred.

Ciel frowned. "There's no residue…?"

"Then a fire couldn't have been the cause…You see this?" Sebastian circled the altar. "It's the same pattern here as well. It's as if…something detonated."

"Or Someone." Ciel added.

"…Should we investigate further, my Lord?"

Ciel took a moment before replying, surveying the vast stretch of death and decay surrounding them. "No. We've done what we came to accomplish…not that it took much effort…"

"Still, this is quite unnerving. Do you think this may be the work of a fellow demon?"

"I do not know, Sebastian. Nor do I care to. I've no time for such games."

The butler's mouth stretched into a sadistic smirk. "Don't you like games Young Master? You are still a child, even in demon terms."

Ciel's cold silence was answer enough, and Sebastian sighed. "Oh, very well…"

With a swish of his dark cape Ciel made his way toward the crypt's entrance. "Let's get out of here. It reeks."

Giving the marred floor one last look, Sebastian followed. "As you wish, My Lord…"

* * *

_Run…Run…Run, run—!_

"Ah!"

The thinly dressed figure stumbled before falling face first into a sticky pile of pure sludge. Whimpering quietly, she ignored the tacky goop dripping down her ruined frock and tugged her foot loose from the thick tangle of roots before continuing. Not paying the stench of briny algae and decay any mind she fought her way through the thick brush, ignoring the shallow cuts forming on her exposed arms and legs; she just had to get away. Far away. She wasn't safe, not safe at all—

Once more she stumbled, though this time the ground was a little more solid. She could feel the difference well enough…stretching out her fingers, she was shocked to feel something mealy and granular grind against the raw pads of her fingertips… _Sand?_

She scurried forward and was immediately met with a powerful gust of wind upon parting the tall wild grass. It had a salty, refreshing taste…was she close to water? Fully free of the marsh's umbrage she pulled herself to her feet and neared a high wooden structure suspended over the river's surface. _A bridge…?_

She crept closer to the land-locked portion of the strange piece of framework, and she almost ran for cover when the boards groaned beneath her weight. She took cautious steps, shooting worried glances over her shoulders. She was sure her captors were no longer on her trail; though, how she'd winded up all the way here was quite a mystery. First she was down in the deepest, darkest hole imaginable and now…

She shook her head. She had no time for this. She was free now, that was all that mattered.

A ways off there was a boat tethered to a pole; glancing to and fro, she climbed in and tugged the rope free. Using the paddle, she shoved the small vessel away from the wharf, and with one last look behind her she rowed her way to freedom.

* * *

**So, that's it for now. Tell me any thoughts you may have, any tweaks that need to be made...And any of you Veteran BB Fans, lend a sistah some character development tips, yeah? I wanna be sure they're IC xD Anyway, thanks for reading, please Review!**

* * *

**Note: Okay, so now that I've had a bit of time to think here's some extraneous details**

**Firstly, this is (obviously) a SebastianXOC pairing, and I've been wanting to make one of color for a while now so. Yeah. She's black (like me! :3). For the plot, its a bit fuzzy; I wanted to try a mystery, adventurey type of story (with romance, of course) but I may just go along a different path. It may be one of those "NewPhantomhiveHouseholdServa nt + SebastianFallsInLove + SliceOfLife" type deal...IDK, just throwing out potential ideas xD**

**I've also been watching old Teen Titans episodes too, particularly the ones about Raven and her Father Trigon and I REALLY wanted to incorporate that into a story of mine for a loooong time, so I just smooshed it in with this! For an DC Comic fanatics out there, that's where I got the inspiration for her name, Rachel. Also, m****y mental processes are really wacky, so if my explanation is confusing sorry 'bout that ^^'**

**I've almost finished the second installment (it might be about 4-5 pages...these chapters are gonna be a LOT shorter than my usually 10-15 page-length chapters for TA, hehe ^_^), so please tell me your thoughts on that one as well!**


End file.
